Laura (lindsacl)'s Orange January 2012

My Orange mascot, Pumpkin, helps create my reading list

My 2011 Orange threads: January | July

I've read all the winners, and am currently working on the short lists. I don't necessarily want to read every shortlisted book, but there are several years where I have read the winner, and all but one or two of the shortlisted titles. My inner completist is calling very loudly to "finish" 2011, 2008, 2006, 2004, and 2002. That would be 10 books, but doesn't leave much room to read the 2012 short list. So we'll see.

Meanwhile, I've chosen my January reads:
Oryx and Crake (2004) - because I have this one on my shelves
Ice Road (2004) - to complete the 2004 shortlist
Beyond Black (2006) - by the author of Wolf Hall, which I loved.
Lullabies for Little Criminals (2008), because group members raved about this one in July
Fault Lines (2008), to complete the 2008 shortlist

Those are some good selections! Lullabies for Little Criminals will--without hesitation--go down as my favourite book in 2011. I really liked Oryx and Crake when I read it years ago, and Fault Lines was different and pretty good (it's better if you can suspend belief). Don't know the fourth one.

Thanks Joyce, I hadn't heard of Ice Road either. And I've just discovered my library doesn't have it. That changes my plans. They have a couple of Ice Road Truckers books, but that's not exactly Orangey, is it?

I'll be on the lookout for Ice Road, and added it to my Paperbackswap wish list. But for January I've substituted another book.

I second Joyce in that Lullabies for Criminals is one of my favourite reads. Loved it!

I may be reading Beyond Black too! =) Great list! And welcome back, Pumpkin!

Beyond Black is VERY different from Wolf Hall (one of the things I love about Hilary Mantel is that she's unafraid to try completely different themes, styles, etc.), and I really enjoyed it too, but it has met with mixed reactions.

Beyond Black does reinforce the fact that the author is capable of inventing many voices for her different novels.
Lullabies for Criminals -also terrific- won Canada Reads on the CBC a few years ago.

>4 vancouverdeb:-7: now I'm even more excited about my reading list! Thanks.

Oryx and Crake is at the top of my list also; I look forward to hearing your thoughts. I own Lullabies for Little Criminals and it's on my Maybe List for the month.

Oryx and Crake has been hovering near the top of Mt TBR for several years. Really must do something about that.

Looking forward to your reading, Laura!

Hi, Laura. What's Pumpkin have to say for himself these days?

Meow.

Seriously, he's sweet as can be but starting to show his age. We think he's about 12 but don't know for sure since he came to us as a stray. I'm actually wondering if he's lost his hearing because sometimes he doesn't react to something that he can't see. But I love how he curls up in my lap every single evening. He used to be standoffish but now he's a real cuddler.

and he is Orange............ :-)

Making the rounds of everyone's threads in prep for Orange January. Adding my plug for Lullabies for Little Criminals - it is not what you would expect. Happy Orange reading!

Great selection, Laura, and a very lovely picture of you and Pumpkin. I do believe I spy 'green spines' stacks
in those amazing bookcases of yours!

Intrigued by Lullabies for Little Criminals and look forward to reading your thoughts.

>18 rainpebble:: yes you do, Bleu ... 'tis my Virago bookcase!

Gotcha starred and eagerly awaiting your comments on your Orange reads Laura.

I picked up my January books from the library today! Woo hoo!

Woo hoo! Which one are you going to read first?

Woo Hoo for sure!!
Laura, I have to say that I often like books from the Orange long lists more than the ones that were shortlisted. I wonder whether I'm alone in this preference..... The Keep, The End of Mr. Y, In the Dark, Case Histories, The Bonesetter's Daughter, The Seas spring to mind. You've read more than I, but it does seem to me that the serious ones almost always deal with tragedy and dysfunction as opposed to some of the experimental or just plain good, fun stuff. (And as I look at my list, I see plenty of tragedy and dysfunction too.) Oh well... Just asking!

>21 LizzieD:: I'm not sure yet, Jill! They're all sitting pretty in a nice stack right now. I either need to read the back covers and see what grabs me, or just choose at random.
>22 lauralkeet:: You may be right, Peggy. I've never really tracked my longlist reading, although I'm sure I've read several.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts, Laura. I just received Lullabies in a swap so I might add that to my own January reading.

Peggy, some of my favourites are from the longlist too and they do seem a little less harrowing than some of my favourite shortlisted books!

I've decided to read Beyond Black first, for silly reasons really. It's the chunkiest of the books I checked out of the library. I'm going to be traveling mid-month and if I haven't finished my Orange books yet I'd rather bring the "less chunky" ones with me.

I've been interested in that one since reading Wolf Hall, looking forward to seeing your review.

Beyond Black (DNF)
Reviewed on LibraryThing & on my blog
2006 Shortlist

I have to admit this is not my usual fare: "A modern-day medium and a jaded divorceé navigate the world of psychic fairs, until a crazed spirit guide threatens to pull them over to the beyond -- a place from which they can never return." But it was written by Hilary Mantel, author of the Booker Prize-winning Wolf Hall. And it was nominated for the Orange Prize, just like Wolf Hall. So I had high expectations, but I was ultimately disappointed and unable to finish this, my first book of 2012.

Alison is a spiritual medium, working fairs and stage shows where she brings her audience messages from those who have passed into "Spirit World." Colette, recently divorced, attends one of her shows and later becomes Alison's business partner, helping to organize her diary and the accounts. Alison is haunted by a troubled past, and by many spirits who speak to her routinely. Among these is Morris, her "spiritual guide," a presence from her childhood who is always hanging around and is, frankly, disgusting. Colette brings a sense of order to Alison's life, and working for Alison helps Colette land on her own two feet.

Weird? Yes. Intriguing? Maybe. But dreadfully slow-moving. And then Princess Diana dies, and Alison & Colette meet up with other mediums and fortune-tellers. I thought this might be interesting, but it was more of the same: lots of talk, spirits intruding and making Alison sick, Colette fretting about, and Morris being disgusting. Then Alison & Colette decide to try to get away from all this by buying a house in a new community, and that seems to take them forever. Things weren't looking good for them personally, and I figured anything that happened was going to take a long time. Like another 165 pages. I just didn't have it in me.

I haven't tackled any of Mantel's works yet - trepidation that it is just not for me stops me from picking up her books - and your excellent review of Beyond Black has me thinking that I will stick to my position that Mantel's works aren't geared toward me as the target audience.

#27 - I haven't read any Mantel yet either, but I get the impression that her books are all quite different from each other.

I didn't like Beyond Black much either, Laura. I made it to about three quarters of the way through and then gave up as I was liking it less, the more I read. I was very impressed by A Change of Climate though, liked An Experiment in Love with some reservations and found Fludd interesting but don't know if I'd recommend it. I also liked her memoir, Giving Up the Ghost. Beyond Black was my least favourite by far!

Well your Orange January can't help but get better then.
I hope your copy of O&C isn't censored like HRO's!
(I'm guessing you'll enjoy Fault Lines.)

>27 lkernagh:-29: Like Joyce, I've also heard Mantel's books are all quite different. I have A Change of Climate on my shelves, so that's something to look forward to.

>30 buriedinprint:: good to see encouraging comments about Fault Lines!

I'm not reading your full review yet, as I'm still in the midst of Beyond Black. I have noted that you weren't thrilled with it, though.

Regarding Beyond Black, I'm just past the point you mentioned, lindsacl, and still reading. I'm finding it quite enjoyable, although quirky might be a better way of describing it.

Methinks Beyond Black deserves its own discussion thread, so I started one: http://www.librarything.com/topic/130142! Please join in! =)

Ohhh Laura, thanks for reading Beyond Black for me. Now I can skip it! So far Hilary Mantel just has not grabbed me. Great review!

Love that photo Laura! :D

I just noticed you have Fault Lines listed for this month. I read it last year and really enjoyed it Laura.

Hooray! I'm glad to hear that.

Oh dear, Beyond Black sounds rather dreadful. Hopefully you've moved on to better Oranges!

Laura, I'm loving The Siege by Helen Dunmore, and as luck would have it, I found the second in the trilogy yesterday for $8.99 and picked it up. I don't think that the third book is written as yet. It's excellent, yes!

Oh, sorry to hear that your first book of the year did not grab you -but I don't think it would have grabbed me either! Don't despair, Laura! I loved Lullabies for Little Criminals but it's definitely not for everyone. I did not expect to enjoy it.

Now that I've finished up The Siege by Helen Dunmore, I'm wondering what will measure up to that fabulous read.....

I hope that the next book that you pick up grabs you tight!

Lullabies for Little Criminals ()
Reviewed on LibraryThing & on my blog
2008 Shortlist

Baby lives with her father, Jules, a heroin addict. She doesn't remember her mother:

He and my mother had both been fifteen when I was born. She had died a year later, so he'd been left to raise me all by himself. It didn't make him any more mature than any other twenty-six-year-old, though. He practically fell on the floor and died when a song he liked came on the radio. He was always telling people that he was color-blind because he thought it made him sound original. He also didn't look too much like a parent ... I thought of him as my best friend, as if we were almost the same age. (p. 4)

Jules tries to make a living and support his habit by peddling merchandise at flea markets. To stay one step ahead of their landlord they seem to always be on the move. Baby knows how to fit her entire life into a small suitcase. Despite all these disadvantages, Baby is smart and does well in school. She seems determined to overcome the odds, but her world is turned upside down when Jules goes into rehab, and Baby into the foster care system. Over the next year, Baby moves in and out of care, is placed into a remedial program at school, and gets sucked into the unhealthy lifestyle on the streets of Montreal.

Baby narrates her story with an authentic twelve-year-old's voice, and really got on my nerves for the first half of the book. But as her personal hardships intensified, so did my sympathy, and I found myself pulling for her. She was often left on her own for days at a time, and had to grow up far too quickly. I understood why she did what she did, but wished I could influence her choices (I'm avoiding spoilers here).

Such a realistic and gritty story should have been "unputdownable." It thought it was an interesting and unique book, but had no problem setting it aside. It may have just been my mood this past week; I still recommend reading this Orange Prize nominee.

Oh dear i just got this one in the mail from PBS last week. I know you say you recommend this one but IDK...3 stars means...I'm in no rush to read it Laura. Excellent review especially where her 12 year old voice got on your nerves:)

Brenzi - like Laura said, maybe it was her mood, but don't let that dissuade you. Most people who have read it really love it, and it was by far my favourite book last year. Where Baby got on Laura's nerves, I fell in love with her (I listened to the book, and the reader was perfect, so maybe that was why the voice struck me so intensely). And maybe the reason I loved it was because it was such a surprise--I listened to it knowing absolutely nothing about it.

Hearing a lot about a book or movie almost always ruins it for me. And then I just don't think every book is for everybody. It would be so boring if we all liked and disliked the same things. Or sometimes it's just the wrong time for a particular book (I feel that way about my reading of Possession--a book I'm sure I would have loved if I were in a different place when I read it).

>44 Nickelini:: agree with your points, Joyce. Audio would have been really good, I think. And I had a crappy week last week, so it's quite possible that influenced me.

Fault Lines ()
Reviewed on LibraryThing & on my blog
2008 Shortlist

This multi-generational family saga explores the impact of World War II and Nazi Germany, from some very unusual angles. It's told through the eyes of four 6-year-olds, each from a different generation. The reader meets each generation through Sol, a precocious boy living in California in 2004. His father Randall works as a computer programmer, and circumstances have recently forced him to take a job with higher pay but a much longer commute. Randall has a distant relationship with his mother, Sadie, and is closer to his grandmother, Erra, a professional singer known as Kristina in her youth. Sol's section of the novel ends as the entire family arrives in Germany to visit Erra's dying sister.

From there, author Nancy Huston takes us back to 1945 one generation at a time, from Randall to Sadie to Kristina (all age 6). She peels the onion of family relationships and secrets to show how they came to North America, and the physical and emotional toll wrought by the Nazi regime. I can't say much without spoilers, but their story was not at all what I expected. Judaism and Nazi atrocities played a part, but in unusual ways. And both the family tree and the inter-generational relationships were much more intricate than they first appeared.

I found Erra/Kristina the most interesting character, perhaps because she appeared in each generation's story. She arrived on the scene first as a staunchly independent elderly woman who dearly loves her great-grandson, and is appalled at some of his parents' philosophies. She despairs over their plans to surgically remove a birthmark. Her fears seem irrational, but by the time Kristina appeared as a child, I understood the birthmark's significance and her modern-day reaction was completely understandable. Fault Lines was filled with revelations like this, that really drove home the importance of understanding the societal and familial forces that shape each generation. This was a well-written, enjoyable, and thought-provoking novel.

Fault Lines sounds fantastic - onto the Wishlist it goes!

Been on my wishlist for awhile! Can't wait to obtain a copy one day! Great review, as usual, my dear....

Great review, Laura. I'd been a bit put off this one by the six-year-old-narrators but it sounds like it works.

Great! And great review. It brought it right back for me Laura.

Gee, thanks everybody! Dee, if I'd known the narrators were 6 I would have been put off too. It worked in Room, because of a single authentic voice. 6-year-old Sol was a bit annoying but endearing in his own way, and with the others, I almost forgot they were kids at times.

Are you still trying to squeeze in another Orange read this month? Or has Liz got you all in a tizzy?

I took a week or so off from Oranges, but am wrapping up with Oryx and Crake right now. I'm just over halfway through. Quite different from my usual reads, and I'm surprised to be enjoying it.

Oryx and Crake ()
Reviewed on LibraryThing & on my blog
2004 Shortslit

Human society, they claimed, was a sort of monster, its main by-products being corpses and rubble. It never learned, it made the same cretinous mistakes over and over, trading short-term gain for long-term pain. It was like a giant slug eating its way relentlessly through all the other bioforms on the planet, grinding up life on earth and shitting it out the backside in the form of pieces of manufactured and soon-to-be-obsolete plastic junk. (p. 243)

Snowman, formerly known as Jimmy, lives in relative solitude, sleeping in a lean-to and scavenging for food and water in a city destroyed by a disaster. He wears a watch, although it no longer functions, and covers himself with a bed sheet as protection from the sun's harsh rays. Snowman also watches over the "Children of Crake," a group of ... what are they? People? Aliens? And how did all this come to pass?

Snowman's entire life is set sometime in a near future, that bears some resemblance to the world we know today. The story takes us back to Snowman's childhood, when his father worked for one of many corporations using science to "improve" the world. Through genetic engineering, they seek to evolve human and animal life to advanced forms, free from perceived weaknesses. But of course that comes with a price to people and society. Snowman and his best friend Crake spend their days in typical boy/teen pursuits, like videogames, but even these have a somewhat sinister aspect. As they grow up, their paths diverge -- Crake is more scientifically minded, and is recruited by a renowned university -- but they meet up again in their 20s, along with Oryx, a beautiful woman they have both admired for years.

Along the way, Margaret Atwood leaves tiny clues, so the reader begins to envision what will happen, and how Snowman ends up as possibly the last remaining human on earth. It's both gripping and highly disturbing. Atwood considers her work "speculative fiction," not science fiction. And Oryx and Crake has the requisite dystopian and apocalyptic elements. It's not my usual fare, but she is so good at it, I could easily imagine Snowman's world, and see the path to it from the world I know today. In writing Oryx and Crake, Margaret Atwood said she intended to give one answer to the question, "What if we continue down the road we're already on? How slippery is the slope? What are our saving graces? Who's got the will to stop us?" And frankly, her answer is bleak. It could be a wake-up call. Or we could all just continue down the road we're already on ...